Girls from 14 countries around the world are coming together online as part of a global seminar series sponsored by Miss Porter’s School to delve into the COVID-19 pandemic and empower girls to problem-solve during this unprecedented time.
Entitled “Pandemic: A Call To Action,” the May series featured speakers from a variety of different fields, including medical professionals, tech and software engineers, and public policy experts from the United Nations and UNICEF, as well as Miss Porter’s faculty and staff. The series is designed to give girls, most of them from our partner schools such as Rishikul Vidyapeeth Sonipat in Haryana, India, Vidya Devi Jindal School in Delhi, India, SEK – El Castillo School in Madrid, Spain and Kichijo Girls’ School in Tokyo, Japan, a chance to connect, and help solve problems in their neighborhoods and communities.
“It’s been wonderful to see the connections being made across different cultures and languages all over their world,” said Director of the Institute for Global Education Sophie Paris. “They’re finding so much in common, even as they’re developing a deeper understanding of the issues we’re facing.”
Junior Ella H. said this was a great way to keep connected, even across many miles.
“Participating in this conference has become the highlight of my week,” said Ella, who has facilitated two of the smaller breakout groups, which included 12 participants from seven different countries. “I’ve so enjoyed all that I have learned from the panelists… It is a unique and impactful experience to be able to hear from all the many different perspectives. I remember in the first session when I saw the Zoom participants count almost reach 100. A huge smile crept across my face as I was so grateful for this newfound connectivity in a time of separation.”
The final session, which takes place online on May 23, will focus on the students working together to come up with solutions to some of the problems the pandemic has caused in their communities, said Director of Technology, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship Sam Ahn.
“We want them to walk away at the end, having learned a lot of different things, and done something about what they learned,” Mr. Ahn said.